By Juliet Umeh

The Nigerian Association of Technologists in Engineering, NATE, has raised concerns over what it described as a worsening shortage of critical engineering skills in Nigeria, warning that the trend could undermine the country’s industrialisation ambitions and technological advancement.

President of NATE, Mr. Dominic Udoatan, said Nigeria’s technical education system was struggling to produce the skilled workforce required to drive manufacturing, production engineering and industrial development.

Speaking in an interview in Lagos, Udoatan identified obsolete training facilities, inadequate practical equipment, poor laboratory infrastructure, irregular electricity supply and a shortage of qualified instructors as major factors fueling the skills gap.

According to him, the situation has been compounded by the absence of key engineering disciplines such as foundry technology, machine tools practice and biomedical engineering in mainstream technical training programmes.

“These are strategic skills that form the backbone of manufacturing, production engineering and industrial development. Their absence continues to create significant gaps in the country’s technical manpower needs,” he said.

Udoatan noted that despite several government reforms aimed at strengthening technical and vocational education, the country was yet to achieve the expected outcomes in workforce development and industrial capacity building.

To address the challenge, he said NATE had initiated a number of capacity-building programmes designed to equip technologists with practical competencies needed in modern industries.

“We are working to develop professional standards and training frameworks for specialised technical fields with limited professional representation, particularly foundry technology, machine tools practice and biomedical engineering,” he stated.

The NATE president also advocated regular retraining of engineers, technologists and technical instructors through structured industrial attachments, arguing that such exposure would help them keep pace with emerging technologies and evolving engineering practices.

“We believe that engineers, technologists and instructors should undergo industrial retraining at least once every five years. This will ensure that graduates acquire skills that are relevant to current industrial realities,” he said.

Udoatan pointed to the Nigerian Machine Tools Limited in Osogbo, Osun State, as a strategic but underutilised national asset capable of supporting skills development in advanced manufacturing.

According to him, the facility possesses the capacity to produce machine tools, Computer Numerical Control, CNC, equipment and mechatronics systems, making it an ideal centre for practical engineering training.

“Government agencies and educational institutions should leverage facilities such as Nigerian Machine Tools Limited for the training of students, graduates and engineering professionals,” he urged.

Beyond training, Udoatan disclosed that NATE had empowered its branches across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones to establish cottage industries focused on designing and fabricating locally-made machines and equipment using indigenous materials.

He explained that the initiative was intended to promote innovation, entrepreneurship and local manufacturing capabilities among technologists.

The association, he added, has also expanded collaborations with institutions including Bayero University Kano and Yaba College of Technology to deliver specialised training in equipment handling, laboratory management and workplace safety.

As part of its long-term strategy, NATE plans to establish dedicated technical training centres and develop foundry facilities for the production of engineering components, automotive parts and machine tools.

“These initiatives are designed to close the nation’s engineering skills gap, reduce dependence on imported technologies and support Nigeria’s ambition of becoming a technologically advanced and industrialised economy,” Udoatan said.

Highlighting the role of innovation in skills development, the NATE president revealed that members of the association had successfully designed and fabricated several indigenous technologies tailored to local needs.

Among the innovations are an egg incubator machine, a patented rice de-stoning machine, a coconut de-shelling machine and a castor oil seed de-husking machine.

“These projects expose technologists to practical engineering processes while also addressing challenges in Nigeria’s agricultural and industrial sectors,” he explained.

“We are not only training technologists but also encouraging them to develop solutions that can support local industries and reduce dependence on imported equipment.”

Looking ahead, Udoatan said NATE was preparing to expand its programmes in biomedical engineering, with a focus on the maintenance and local production of medical equipment adapted to Nigeria’s operating environment.

According to him, the association’s broader objective is to build a sustainable pipeline of highly skilled engineering professionals capable of driving innovation, strengthening local manufacturing and accelerating Nigeria’s industrial transformation.